Report: 49ers' NaVorro Bowman has multiple torn ligaments

Updated 11:25 pm, Monday, January 20, 2014

Photo: Michael Macor, The Chronicle

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49ers NaVorro,Bowman, (53) is carted off the field after a leg injury in the fourth quarter, as the San Francisco 49ers went on to lose to the Seattle Seahawks 23-17, in the NFC Championship game at CenturyLink Field in Seattle, Washington on Sunday Jan. 19, 2014. less

49ers NaVorro,Bowman, (53) is carted off the field after a leg injury in the fourth quarter, as the San Francisco 49ers went on to lose to the Seattle Seahawks 23-17, in the NFC Championship game at CenturyLink ... more

Photo: Michael Macor, The Chronicle

Report: 49ers' NaVorro Bowman has multiple torn ligaments

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As it turns out, NaVorro Bowman's knee injury was as bad as it looked.

Bowman tore the ACL and MCL in his left knee in the fourth quarter of Sunday's NFC Championship Game loss to Seattle, according to ProFootballTalk.com and ESPN. That's apparently what an MRI exam of Bowman's knee showed Monday.

Bowman made an appearance at 49ers headquarters in Santa Clara, but he didn't stay for the team meeting or media availability afterward. He hobbled to an SUV on crutches about the time the meeting started, climbed into the back seat and soon departed.

He sent out this tweet later in the day: "Just wanna say Thank You for everyone's support it sucks not going to lie but I will get through this it's in Gods hands now."

The general time frame to return from an injury such as Bowman's is up to nine months, or mid-October. That means he could miss the early part of the 2014 season.

Guard Mike Iupati, meantime, fractured his left fibula (not his ankle), according to a league source. Iupati will not need surgery and is expected to fully recover in about two months, the source said.

Center-turned-RB: Jonathan Goodwinwas talking about his impending free agency, and the reality of being a 35-year-old center without a contract for next season. He laughed when a reporter jokingly asked if he should demand "running back money," given the way he scooped up Colin Kaepernick's third-quarter fumble Sunday and charged ahead for 6 yards.

"That's definitely one I won't forget," Goodwin said. "It was fun until I turned around and saw two blue shirts running at me. I tried to get low, so they wouldn't take my knees out."

Goodwin said it was the first time he had carried the ball since high school.

Iguodala bummed: Andre Iguodalais a life-long 49ers fan, and he carried the torch throughout the playoffs in the Warriors' locker room.

On Monday morning, he, like many other fans, expressed some frustration with Sunday's officiating.

"It was a good game, actually," he said. "There were a couple of questionable calls. I can't get fined for talking about the refs in the NFL, right? When (punter Andy Lee) got run into, we would have gone down and scored. ... That's a difference-maker.

"(Bowman) dives on the ground with the ball and eight or nine people jump on him, and they get the ball back? I don't know. In the second half, I just kind of sensed that momentum was going to Seattle. It was a good game, though."

Briefly: Bowman obviously will miss the Pro Bowl, and running back Frank Gorereportedly also plans to skip the game because of a knee injury. ... Cornerback Chris Culliver, sidelined all season by a torn ACL, said he's close to sprinting and plans to participate in the team's offseason program.

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